Writing a Press Release: Using Quotes

Written by Ned Steele

Ideally, you will have two types of quotes in your press release. A quote from yourself is mandatory. To give your release extra impact, get a quote from a third-party.

Quoting yourself may seem unnatural to you at first, but it’s what every reporter expects. Your quote should be about information in press release, not about how great you are. As I always say, key to getting publicity is to build your story around information, not around yourself.

A good quote: “This tip is single best advice for homeowners,” said local attorney Nicole Jones.

A bad quote: “I am best lawyer in town,” Ms. Jones said.

Writing a Press Release: The Media's Dirty Secret

Written by Ned Steele

There's a dirty little secret about press releases that media doesn't want you to know. The fact is, most of them travel directly from sender’s computer to reporter’s trash box. Or from out of envelope into "round file."

That's part of reason reporters don't like to be asked "did you see my press release." They probably did, but they threw it in trash so they don't remember yours specificially.

But you do still need press releases sometimes. (Like, when you have news.) So when you do, remember this.

You may already know that every press release has a headline – a short title – and a lead, or first paragraph. What you may not know is that virtually nothing else in your release matters!